GreenThumb 2015

Spring Program Guide March • April • May

Judy Dozier from Big Red Community Garden picks up free vegetable plant starts for her garden at Hattie Carthan Community Garden on April 26, 2014. Photo | Phillip Kester, GreenThumb

Does your garden need any of the following supplies? Look inside for details...

Seeds • Hydrant Wrenches and Adaptors • Soil/Compost/Mulch Requests (For Fall Delivery) • Soil Testing Kits • Lumber Requests (For Fall Delivery) • Seed Starting Kits • Plant Starts • SIP’s Irrigation Systems • Community Organizing Books • Kids Tools • Compost Sifter Supplies

Please note that garden members must attend workshops to receive supplies. All workshops are free and open to the public, with no pre-registration (unless otherwise noted). Workshops are rain or shine, canceled only in the event of lightning or other dangerous conditions. All supplies are for registered gardens only and are available first-come, first-served, while supplies last.

WWW.GREENTHUMBNYC.ORG MARCH Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday EVENT CALENDAR 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 GreenThumb Workshops & Events

9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Starting Seeds in a Greenhouse or Indoors Saturday, March 7th / 1:00 p.m.–3:00 p.m. BRONX 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Saturday, March 28th / 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. BROOKLYN Saturday, April 18th / 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. MANHATTAN 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 31st Annual GreenThumb GrowTogether Saturday, March 21st / 8:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m. BRONX 30 31 Water-Wise Gardening and Hydrants 101 Tuesday, March 24th / 5:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. MANHATTAN

APRIL SIPs: Sub-Irrigation Planting Systems Saturday, April 4th / 10:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday BROOKLYN

1 2 3 4 5 Double Raised Bed Building Thursday, April 9th / 4:30 p.m.–6:30 p.m. QUEENS

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Square Foot Gardening 101: Companion Planting Saturday, April 11th / 1:00 p.m.–3:00 p.m. BRONX 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 How to Start a Nonprofit Organization & Fiscal Sponsorship Thursday, April 23rd / 5:30 p.m.–7:00 p.m. 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 BROOKLYN Plant Starts Giveaway Saturday, May 2nd / 10:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. 27 28 29 30 QUEENS Saturday, May 9th / 10:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. BRONX Saturday, May 16th / 10:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. BROOKLYN MAY Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Soil Health Wednesday, May 13th / 5:30 p.m.–7:30 p.m. 1 2 3 MANHATTAN

Teaching in the Garden Thursday, May 14th / 4:30 p.m.–6:30 p.m. 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 STATEN ISLAND Butterfly Project NYC Native Plant Share Saturday, May 16th / 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 BRONX Worm Composting Wednesday, May 20th / 5:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. BROOKLYN 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Compost Workshop Tuesday, May 26th / 5:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. BRONX 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Beneficial Insects Saturday, May 23rd / 10:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. BROOKLYN

2 31st Annual GreenThumb GrowTogether You are invited on March 21st to join thousands of community gardeners and greening professionals from all over New York City for a day of learning, sharing, networking and greening inspiration at the 31st Annual GreenThumb GrowTogether! Please pass this information out to the rest of your garden group and anyone else who might be interested. This year’s conference features favorite workshops from past years, as well as exciting new ones, including many hands on workshops for youth gardeners.

Saturday, March 21st Pre-register Online 8:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m. www.brownpapertickets.com/event/959258

Hostos Community College Pre-register by Mail 500 Grand Concourse Fill out the form on page 7 and mail the completed Bronx, NY 10451 form with a check or money order made payable to “City Parks Foundation/GreenThumb” to: Train: 2, 4, 5 to 149th Street Bus: Bx1 or cross-town Bx19 to 149th Street GrowTogether (Eugenio María de Hostos Boulevard and 49 Chambers Street the Grand Concourse) Room 1020 New York, NY 10007 Pre-register by March 13th $5 = breakfast + workshops + lunch + t-shirt Pre-register before March 13th to guarantee breakfast, lunch, conference participation and t-shirt. Register at the Door on March 21st $7 = breakfast + workshops *If you do not pre-register, you are not guaranteed lunch or a t-shirt.

For more information or additional forms visit: www.greenthumbnyc.org

GreenThumb and New York Restoration Project (NYRP) are teaming up to bring you free trees! Please check back to register to reserve a tree to plant in your front or back yards, gardens or commercial property. Registration is typically available approximately two weeks prior to the giveaway. If registration is full, a limited number of trees is available on a first-come, first-served basis at the event.

NYRP’s city-wide tree giveaway program is a part of MillionTreesNYC, the initiative to plant and care for one million new trees in New York City by 2015. It is the largest municipal giveaway in the country, and is generously supported by sponsors TD Bank and Toyota.

3 Tuesday, March 24th / 5:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. Starting Seeds in a MANHATTAN GreenThumb Office / 49 Chambers Street, Room 1020 Greenhouse or Indoors *Please bring ID to enter the building New York Botanical Garden, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Bus: M22, M15, M6, B51 and GreenThumb Train: R, W, J, M, Z, 4, 5, 6 to Brooklyn Bridge/City Hall Get gardening early by starting your seeds in a 1, 2, 3, A, C, E to Chambers Street greenhouse or sunny window. We’ll walk you through the steps of sowing, go over what healthy seedlings need to grow into mature crops, and document the process by keeping good records. SIP’s: Sub-Irrigation Supplies: Vegetable, flower and herb seeds and seed starting kits Planting Systems GreenThumb Saturday, March 7th / 1:00 p.m.–3:00 p.m. BRONX Learn how to build your own portable Sub-Irrigation Padre Plaza Community Garden / 541 East 139th Street Plating System—also known by the term “self-watering.” Bus: Bx17, Bx33 to 138th Street/St. Ann’s Avenue SIP’s water from below and allow plants to absorb Train: 6 to Brook Avenue moisture more efficiently, which saves water and helps Saturday, March 28th / 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. plants build strong root systems. BROOKLYN Supplies: SIP’s supplies Keap Fourth Community Garden / 347 Keap Street Train: J, M, Z to Marcy Avenue or Saturday, April 4th / 10:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. G to Metropolitan Avenue BROOKLYN Whole Neighborhood Garden / 1001 Bedford Avenue Saturday, April 18th / 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. Bus: B38 to Bedford Avenue/Dekalb Avenue MANHATTAN Train: G to Bedford Avenue/Lafayette Avenue Maggie’s Magic Garden / 1574 Lexington Avenue Bus: M101, M102, M103 to 100th Street/Lexington Avenue Train: 6 to 103rd Street Double Raised Bed Building GreenThumb It’s easy to construct a simple raised bed for your Water-Wise Gardening community garden and a double bed provides an easier gardening experience for senior members. We’ll share and Hydrants 101 ideas on design and discuss ways to plan your garden GreenThumb plot for maximum production.

Come to this spring workshop to pick up essential tools Supplies: Lumber request forms for accessing water from the hydrant. GreenThumb gardens are given special permission from the Dept. Thursday, April 9th / 4:30 p.m.–6:30 p.m. of Environmental Protection (DEP) to access hydrants QUEENS for garden use. GreenThumb staff will go over permit Block Association #81 Community Garden / procedures and any other questions you may have about 107-29 Inwood Street the process. For groups who have already registered Train: J, E, F to Parsons Boulevard and connect to Q40 with DEP and obtained their permit for the season, you bus to Inwood Street/Shore Avenue can bring a copy of it to have laminated for the garden.

Supplies: Hydrant wrenches, adaptors and laminating hydrant permits

4 Square Foot Gardening 101: Plant Starts Giveaway Companion Planting GreenThumb and GrowNYC GreenThumb Get your veggie, herb and flower transplants at our annual giveaway, plus tips on square foot gardening. Square Foot Gardening is a simple and practical method All supplies are for registered GreenThumb gardens only for planting to maximize your growing space by breaking and are available on a first-come, first-served basis it down into square foot sections. Learning this method while supplies last. No pre-registration necessary. will allow you to strategize in your garden planning and One site pick-up only. think about space in different ways, for a bountiful and diverse harvest. This growing method is great for young Saturday, May 2nd / 10:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. ones and participants are encouraged to bring them QUEENS along to join in the fun. GreenThumb Compound / Queens Plaza South at 10th Street Supplies: Lumber request forms Train: F to Queensbridge 21st Street or Saturday, April 11th / 1:00 p.m.–3:00 p.m. 7, N, Q to Queensboro Plaza BRONX Saturday, May 9th / 10:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. Franklin Memorial Garden / 1062 Cauldwell Avenue BRONX Bus: Bx15, Bx21 to Prospect Avenue Melrose New Generation / 377 East 160th Street Train: 5 to Prospect Avenue Train: 4, D to 161st Street or 2, 5 to 3rd Avenue-149th Street and connect to Bx41 bus or walk to 160th Street/Melrose Avenue Saturday, May 16th / 10:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. How to Start a Nonprofit BROOKLYN Hattie Carthan Community Garden / Organization and Fiscal 654 Lafayette Avenue Bus: B44 to Nostrand Avenue/Lafayette Avenue Sponsorship Train: A, C to Nostrand Avenue or GreenThumb G to Bedford-Nostrand Avenues Getting a new nonprofit organization off to the right start can mean the difference between success and failure. The experts at the Lawyers Alliance for New York City will teach GreenThumb garden groups the essentials for Soil Health how to start nonprofit organizations and obtain fiscal sponsorship. The presentation will address what it GreenThumb means to be incorporated as a nonprofit corporation and Want to learn how to keep your plants growing strong to be tax exempt. The presentation will also cover fiscal this season? Plant health is usually directly linked to the sponsorship and what an organization should consider health of the soil it is growing in. We will cover soil health when deciding whether to engage a fiscal sponsor. basics. Included in this will be different ways of checking to see how your soil is doing based upon special Supplies: Building Powerful Community indicators. We will also cover the ways you can amend Organizations book or prepare your soil differently in order to improve the Thursday, April 23rd / 5:30 p.m.–7:00 p.m. health of your soil, thereby getting your plants well BROOKLYN nourished and viable. Linden-Bushwick Garden / 113 Linden Street Bus: B52 to Gates Avenue/Evergreen Avenue or Supplies: Soil Testing Kits B38 to Lafayette Avenue/Patchen Avenue Wednesday, May 13th / 5:30 p.m.–7:30 p.m. Train: J, Z to Gates Avenue MANHATTAN La Perla Community Garden / 76 West 105th Street Train: 1, A, B, C to 103rd Street

5 PICKING UP SUPPLIES FOR OTHER GARDEN GROUPS Worm Composting When attending a GreenThumb giveaway, you are only eligible to GreenThumb pick up materials for your garden group, unless arrangments are made with the office. Without prior notice, GreenThumb cannot We will construct a multi-bin worm composting system provide materials to garden members who are there to pick up and learn the basics of vermiculture, including how to for other groups. care for your system and worms, what to put in and leave out and how to harvest worm castings.

Supplies: Soil/compost/mulch requests (for fall delivery) Wednesday, May 20th / 5:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. Butterfly Project NYC BROOKLYN Vinegar Hill Community Garden / 199 York Street Native Plant Share Train: F to York Street Butterfly Project NYC, GreenThumb, Grow to Learn and Bronx Green-Up/New York Botanical Garden Learn more about the connections between native plants and pollinators and how to encourage them in Compost Workshop urban landscapes. This year’s workshop is once again part of NYC Wildflower Week. Plants will be available for GreenThumb pickup, to be used in schoolyards, community gardens, Get ready for hands-on learning! Construct a 3-bin and other public spaces while supplies last. compost sifter and learn the basics of composting garden and food waste to make the soil in your garden Pre-registration is required. Register online at burst with healthy fruits and vegetables. www.butterflyprojectnyc.org by 5:00 p.m. on May 9th.

Supplies: Wire and lumber to build your own sifter, Many thanks to our partners City Parks Foundation and soil/compost/mulch requests (for fall delivery) NYC Wildflower Week. Tuesday, May 26th / 5:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. Supplies: Insect hotels and native plant seeds BRONX Saturday May 16th / 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. Risse Street Community Garden / 10 Risse Street BROOKLYN Train: 4 to Mosholu Parkway Grove Hill Community Garden / 797 Eagle Avenue Train: 2,5 to Jackson Avenue

Teaching in the Garden GreenThumb Beneficial Insects Navigate the fun, but often challenging world of teaching GreenThumb kids in the garden. We will go over proper garden Want to attract native bees, butterflies and other behavior and stewardship practices with hands-on pollinators? Come and learn how to do so with wonderful demonstrations. We also hope to offer strategies that smelling plants with showy flowers and fragrances that will allow you to get work done in the garden while still will also welcome your neighbors. We will talk about the executing a successful lesson plan. different perennial plants that bring in the pollinators Supplies: Kids’ tools and how to care for them and keep them coming for many years. We will also learn about insect hotels, and Thursday, May 14th / 4:30 p.m.–6:30 p.m. how to build your own with materials found in the garden. STATEN ISLAND Joe Holzka Community Garden / 1170 Castleton Avenue Supplies: Insect hotels and native plant seeds Saturday, May 23rd / 10:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. BROOKLYN Tranquility Farm / 267 Throop Avenue Train: G to Myrtle-Willoughby Avenues

6 31st Annual GreenThumb GrowTogether Mail In Registration Please print clearly. The cost is $5 per person; kids 12 and under are free. Send check or money order, payable to “City Parks Foundation/GreenThumb.” If you are also signing up for bus service, please return the bus form with the registration. MAIL TO: GrowTogether, 49 Chambers Street, Room 1020, New York, NY 10007

Check if Name Garden or Affiliation Under 12 Date of Birth

For those gardeners from Brooklyn or Queens who would prefer to take a bus, GreenThumb has scheduled bus pickups in several locations throughout Brooklyn. Departure is at 8:00 a.m. Without a reservation, you will not be guaranteed a seat on the bus. To reserve your space on a bus, check off which site you will depart from, and return this form with your GrowTogether registration.

¨ Brooklyn Bears Pacific Street Garden, corner of Flatbush Avenue and Pacific Street ¨ Boys and Girls High School, 1700 Fulton Street, between Utica Avenue and Malcolm X Boulevard ¨ Thomas Jefferson High School, 400 Pennsylvania Avenue, between Dumont and Blake Avenues

Your Name: Garden Name:

Address:

Telephone (day): (evening):

Number of attendees, including yourself:

Questions? Call GreenThumb at 212.788.8070.

7 City of New York Parks & Recreation GreenThumb 49 Chambers Street, Room 1020 New York, NY 10007

Be Greener! Sign up to get the GreenThumb Program Guide by email instead of postal mail and you’ll save trees AND get it up to a month sooner!

15 + COMMUNITY GARDENS in New York City have beehives. Lucia Hernandez from Bryant Hill Community Garden puts on her beekeeping suit from www.nycbeekeeping. org to prepare for another day with the hive. Photo | Infinitae Hernandez

Phone: 212.788.8070 www.greenthumbnyc.org Fax: 212.788.8052 www.nyc.gov/parks